Safety and Human Factors in Aviation MSc

Why this course?

Delivered through the specialist Safety and Accident Investigation Centre, operating for over 30 years to support global safety and investigation, this course is unique in that it synthesises the study of human factors with the study of safety and safety assessment, creating a powerful combination to really add-on value in applied aviation and safety critical contexts.

It is designed to provide industry with successful and well equipped graduates who can make a real and lasting improvement to performance and safety through the application of skills and knowledge learned on the course. Demand for human factors and safety expertise continues to be a growing area within aviation as well as other safety critical industries. Safety critical systems require high human performance in addition to engineering excellence to meet the safety and business requirements of the aviation industry. To meet these demands, the design of systems must match, support and augment the capabilities of the user.

You will have the opportunity to fly during a Student Experience Flight in our National Flying Laboratory Centre’s (NFLC) light aircraft. This flight experience will complement your MSc studies, focussing on the effects of control, spatial disorientation and the cognitive challenges associated with flight. During the flight you will have the opportunity to take control of the aircraft. Each experience is 2 to 3 hours in duration and includes a pre-flight safety briefing outlining the details of the manoeuvres to be flown, a flight of approximately 1 hour, and a post-flight debrief. Read Wifan's blog on her flight experience.

To study for a formal award at Cranfield you will need to demonstrate that you can communicate effectively in English in an academic environment. You can meet this requirement in the following ways:

• If you have previously obtained a higher education level qualification from a UK university and have been taught and assessed in English (note that international applicants applying for Master’s courses in Cranfield’s School of Management are required to have studied in the UK for the full duration of the course).
• If you are a national of or have a obtained a higher education level qualification from a country on the UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI) list of majority English speaking countries:
  
  

  Antigua and Barbuda	Ireland
  Australia	Jamaica
  The Bahamas	Malta
  Barbados	New Zealand
  Belize	St Kitts and Nevis
  Canada*	St Lucia
  Dominica	St Vincent and the Grenadines
  Grenada	Trinidad and Tobago
  Guyana	United States of America

  
  
  *You will usually be required take an English test if your studies were not taught and assessed in English.
• If you have been continuously employed in the UK for a minimum of five years immediately prior to the start of the course, providing you are able to supply a reference from your current employer which explicitly confirms you are able to communicate effectively in English.
• By providing a satisfactory English test certificate that meets the requirement of the course you have applied for.

Your career

There are strong employment prospects for graduates in safety-related management and operational positions. Course graduates generally find suitable employment in a range of safety and human factors related roles. Previous graduates of the course have been successful in gaining employment with:

• Airbus
• BAE Systems
• British Airways
• Qinetiq
• Virgin Atlantic
• NATS
• Honeywell
• Easyjet
• DHL
• Royal Navy
• Frazer-Nash
• MBDA.